College Students Activism Matters: Lessons from Indonesia

• In Event: Virtual Roundtable Session 2
  In Refereed Roundtable Session: Higher Education in a Changing World: Civic Engagement, Globalization, and Student Agency Across Societies

Proposal

Recently, universities across the United States are facing a wave of student protests that are influencing campus culture and, to some extent, resulting in changes in campus governance. The objectives behind these contemporary student protests remain contentious, leading campus authorities to impose varying degrees of sanctions on student demonstrators. The question of whether students' right to protest on campus falls under the protection of academic freedom is currently under scrutiny. Observing how government bodies and university officials react to student demonstrations is particularly telling, especially from the perspective of someone like me, an Indonesian who witnessed the conclusion of dictatorship in 1998. I have consistently regarded student activism as vital to advancing democracy and social justice. Global student activism often emerges as a pivotal factor in leading to significant policy reforms, from ending warfare to opposing autocratic regimes. Nonetheless, activism among college students is frequently perceived negatively; for instance, U. S. colleges view student encampments as trespass and equate them with terrorism.
This paper aims to offer an alternative viewpoint on college student activism by exploring literature on the activism of Indonesian college students. The activism of students in Indonesia has been recognized as essential for nation-building, particularly during the downfall of Suharto's dictatorship in 1998, when student protests were seen as a key element in his resignation and the onset of the reform era. Indonesian student activism also laid the groundwork for a unified and independent Indonesia during Dutch colonial rule, exemplified by the Declaration of the Indonesian Youth Congress in 1928, which introduced a more peaceful strategy for political resistance against colonial powers. Through an Indonesian lens, this paper intends to reexamine the significance of student activism in upholding democracy, opposing colonialism, and resisting authoritarian regimes through nonviolent political action.

Author

• Dewi Setiani, Michigan State University